Tips for succeeding as a new engineering assistant professor

Abstract

New assistant professors in engineering programs across the United States are being asked to accomplish more than ever before. The pressures of obtaining high levels of externally funded research, publishing quality journal papers, and advising and graduating master and doctoral level students - in addition to being a quality teacher in the classroom - can be overwhelming. This paper offers recommendations for new engineering assistant professors for succeeding as both a contributing member of the engineering faculty and as an engineering educator. We as engineering educators are rarely provided with formal or even informal training in teaching courses. In fact, most new assistant engineering professors have not taught a course prior to becoming an assistant professor. Because of the lack in experience and training, engineering faculty must depend on help from teaching workshops and other university programs. Another strategy to help overcome this lack of experience is reaching out to senior faculty members for mentorship. Typically, senior faculty will be able to provide guidance not just with teaching and course development but also with student advising, grant writing and submission, service on department and university level committees as well as other important focus areas of a tenure-track faculty member. Many departments and universities have established programs in which junior faculty members are paired with senior faculty. They meet on a regular basis to monitor progress of the junior faculty and help answer any questions the junior faculty may have since the previous meeting. Teaching workshops such as the American Society of Civil Engineer's Excellence in Civil Engineering Education (ExCEED) also present great opportunities for tenure-track faculty in developing new and effective ways of teaching. Such workshops teach faculty about the different learning styles of students, how to engage students in the classroom setting, and methods of course delivery. Some new faculty find balancing teaching with research and service a difficult proposition. New assistant professors should be warned against participating on too many professional, department and university committees. On the other hand, collaboration with other faculty on externally funded research should be encouraged. It is critical for new faculty to teach both undergraduate and graduate courses, in part because it can help them identify potential graduate students. These suggestions, as well as a multitude of others included in this paper, offer guidance on how to succeed and thrive as a new faculty member needing to obtain high levels of externally funded research, publish peer-reviewed journal papers, graduate students, as well as evolving into a high-quality teacher in the classroom. © 2011 American Society for Engineering Education.